


Cat-astrophe

by TimidMarshmallow



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Meow Meow, coeurl - Freeform, kitten adorableness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:34:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22603294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TimidMarshmallow/pseuds/TimidMarshmallow
Summary: They find a coeurl in need of aid.I’m not kitten you, that happens in this story, fur real.
Kudos: 20





	Cat-astrophe

They really needed to stop taking jobs from people. Somehow, someway, there was always a complication. 

Like that time they went traipsing through the desert to fight a literal mountain, one that shook the earth even as they marched toward it. Sure, it was actually a giant, ancient, powerful tortoise; why wouldn’t they fight it for some gil? The adamantoise should’ve taught them that accepting bounties wasn’t always the best course of action. But no. They learned nothing from the harrowing experience and continued to place themselves in danger. 

This time it was killer bees. Smaller animals should have meant smaller threat, but since there were multiple enemies the boys were having trouble. 

Insect after insect fell to their weapons, and the day crept towards night. “Is it asking you too much to stay alive!?” Prompto flinched at Gladio’s frustrated exasperation and barely avoided colliding into Ignis. These bees had them in a tight spot. Noctis couldn’t even warp properly, he risked slamming into one of his friends. 

Thankfully the Astrals took pity on them, because that was seriously the only way they were getting out of this predicament. Ramuh’s lightning bolt was the turning point the battle needed. Actually, it was more like the ending point. 

The men, hanging onto their last shreds of energy, dragged themselves away from the charred bee carcasses. They made it back to the cover of the trees before finding more trouble. 

A bush meowed at them. 

“Prompto, stop messing around.” Noctis rubbed his hand over his face. The blond would’ve been more indignant if he wasn’t so tired and sweaty. “That wasn’t me.” 

“Noct, I think it came from that direction.” Ignis stopped walking, but didn’t move towards where he was referring to. Gladio sighed. “Can we just ignore whatever the sound is and go?”

The bushes rustled, the source of the meow obviously trying to find the noisy humans it heard. 

A baby coeurl peeked out of the leaves. It shakily pawed its way forward, and the men froze. Baby animals meant mommy animals weren’t far behind, and adult coeurls were quite fierce. Prompto loved the alliteration of ‘ferocious feline’, but that didn’t mean he loved fighting them. None of the young men did. 

Still and alert, they watched the animal. Running would make more noise and practically invite the nearby adult cat to attack. It was too much to hope that the baby would just go away before the mother came, but hope they did. It did nothing to help them though. 

“it’s so tiny.” Prompto whispered, and the other three glared at him because the coeurl took his words as an invitation to come closer. 

Ignis looked back at the bushes, sure the mother would be pouncing into view soon. “don’t touch it!” 

“i’m not, it’s coming to me!” Prompto held his breath, hoping the lack of movement would keep the cub content. 

Noctis sighed. Of course they’d get stuck with an unwanted companion. 

“It’s just a kitten.” The animal nuzzled against Prompto’s leg, and the man tensed up. “It’s not acting like it wants to kill me. Seriously, though, I’m not in danger right now, right?” 

“Hopefully it is still unable to generate a lethal amount of electricity.” Ignis sighed. He really hoped he was right. Prompto bent to pet his new friend, avoiding the long protrusions from its face. “Hey, please don’t shock me. Okay?” The kitten meowed, and Prompto couldn’t hold back an ‘aww’. 

“You won’t be saying that when Mama Coeurl comes to get her ball of fluff.” Gladio crossed his arms. Noctis stepped closer to the bushes, scanning for the cat they were all worrying about. “I don’t see anything. I think we’re okay for right now.” 

Prompto tried to take a step and the kitten pawed at his leg. “Guys, we can’t just leave him here all alone! Without his mom he’ll get hurt.” 

“Hmm, and it looks too young to hunt for itself.” Noctis looked back at the lonely baby, remembering all the times he had missed his own parent. They all heard a sudden roar… it sounded like a noise born of pain. The animal needed help. 

“And there’s the mother. Come on, we need to get out of here.” Gladio turned to depart. Wounded creatures were especially vicious because they feared more pain. The kitten meowed repeatedly, yelling for its mother. “Leave it, let’s go.” 

“No, something’s wrong. Look how small it is, something will hurt it. Noct?” Prompto couldn’t just leave the animal alone. Growing up by himself meant he had a soft spot for the young and abandoned. Noctis nodded, agreeing with his friend (he’d seen this side of Prompto many times). The prince put a hand on his bodyguard’s shoulder, pulling the rarely used rank card. “We need to do something. Ignis, ideas?”

“Let’s locate the mother. Once she is visible we can leave the cub within her sights and evacuate.” Ignis hoped the creature would be too preoccupied with the baby to attack. He didn’t bother trying to dissuade his younger friends, knowing that it would waste time. In this instance it would be more prudent to advise than argue. Prompto picked up their new friend, who immediately nuzzled the blond. “Aw, who’s a little ball of floof?”

They walked around the area, but it became increasingly clear that the roar they had initially heard had sounded from somewhere farther than they thought. The night was falling quickly. They had to get to the haven. 

“Prompto, you have its whisker… antennae… things right against your arm. It isn’t stinging you?” Noctis put a finger against his friend’s bicep to test him. A light static shock stung both of them. “Guess that’s all the little guy can do.”

“You’re lucky that’s all it can do.” Gladio hoped it wouldn’t learn how to turn up the wattage while they played ‘kitty-sitter’. 

The party retreated to the closest haven, a bit uneasy about the newest addition. 

-o-

Their new friend was kneading on Prompto’s lap. The photographer couldn’t get a good angle to record the adorable event because the cat didn’t stay still enough. Noctis was sitting right next to them, trying to ‘psspssspst’ the animal to him. It didn’t work, the baby coeurl too busy massaging Prompto’s legs and purring. 

Ignis was busy preparing food for all five of them. He had enlisted Gladio’s help, needing the extra assistance to cut all the garula meat up. He was paying extra attention to the kitten’s serving, making sure the meat was in small enough pieces and that it wasn’t too tough or gamey. 

“Aw, you need a name!” Prompto scratched under the cat’s chin. Gladio chimed in from across the camp, voice firm in response to the blond’s declaration. “Do NOT name it. Then you won’t let it go.” 

“No! He needs to go back to his mom, I know that!! I just can’t keep calling it ‘cat’. That sounds so impersonal… like, we’re still just strangers or something.” He’d named Pryna before learning her name, he’d even secretly picked a name for that dog they had found on the side of the road, and so he needed to pick a name for the new animal he’d met.

Noctis stretched and stood, wanting to see if dinner was almost ready.“Prompto, I don’t think he cares.” 

“He likely only cares for this.” Ignis held up a bowl. “Can you give this to him while I finish everyone else’s?” The approaching Noctis was forced to retrace his steps to deliver the dinner. 

“How come he gets to eat first?” Gladio had noticed all of Ignis’ extra efforts while preparing the meal, and decided to heckle the chef. Ignis ignored it, but Prompto didn’t. “Getting jealous, big guy?” 

“Nah, just think it’s funny how you guys are acting just like Iris. I remember she brought home a stray cat once. I thought it was the cutest thing until it scratched me. She treated that thing like royalty.” Gladio did like cats, he did, but that one left a particularly sour memory. He had been nothing but gentle, so it hurt that the cat hadn’t appreciated his effort.

“Must’ve been scared of your face.” Noctis was just teasing. The animal from the past had likely been afraid of his size. “I know I am.”

“Ha ha. What a clever king we have ruling over us.”

“Actually, I am clever. I’ll bet none of you remembered that cats have whole litters of kittens. This little guy likely has siblings out there who are also worried about their mother.” Noctis was not as proud as he should have been for remembering the animal kingdom fact because of what it meant. He felt guilty at the thought of other young beasts lost and hungry. At least they had found this one. 

The other three sombered. It wasn’t their fault. They couldn’t help that they had only come across this kitten. “We’ll leave first thing in the morning to locate the mother. She’d have better luck finding the potential litter of lost ones.” Ignis’ suggestion was taken to heart, and that eased the guilt a little. 

-o-

They had nothing to prepare for breakfast, and so they were forced to put the coeurl hunt off for a bit longer. The drive to the nearest diner and back to the probable location of the animal would not take much time. Prompto lifted their little buddy onto his lap in the front seat of the Regalia. “You match my pants, haha.”

“You do realize that all that cat hair will be easy to see against your black clothes?” Ignis quirked an eyebrow, not taking his eyes off of the road though. 

“I’ve got an idea! Let’s trade colors with Tenebrae!” Prompto scratched at the fuzzy chin. “What do you think of that?”

“I’ve got an idea: shut up.” Gladio put his hands over his eyes, exhausted already. None of them had slept well. The coeurl kitten had been all around the inside of the tent as the humans tried to get some shut-eye. Even the wild animal possessed the three-a.m.-psychotic-racing gene that domestic animals had. Prompto kept going despite the rude plea. “Well… White clothes stain anyway… How does Lady Lunafreya always look so perfect?”

Noctis decided to comment. “I think it’s because she’s got this grace about her.”

“I’m glad you three are thinking, but can’t you do so silently? I’d like to have some peace while I drive.” Ignis was also cranky and tired, and it was at the point where everything was an irritant. He hated when he got like that, and he forced himself to snap out of it. “My apologies, I think… we all need food.” 

“That’s the best idea I’ve heard today!” Prompto wholeheartedly agreed. He was so hungry he didn’t even care about the calories. “Mm, greasy diner food would definitely hit the spot. 

Done brainstorming, the car became quiet. The kitten fell asleep. Prompto carefully moved him to the seat when they arrived, and Ignis put the roof up so the car would become an enclosed space. They ordered food to go so they could get back to the task at hand. Luckily the animal stayed asleep, so nobody was trying to fend off a hungry cat as they ate. 

Driving back to yesterday’s spot didn’t take long, and the cat suddenly deemed Noctis worthy of carrying him through the field. Prompto let out a gasp of mock betrayal. “After all the pets I’ve given you?”

Ignis snickered. “Now you know how I feel. I fed him and he barely gave me a second glance.” Noctis smirked. “Listen to them whining, little guy.”

Gladio stopped their jesting. “Look. There she is.”

The mother was there, a few feet ahead and partially hidden in the bushes. The location was a lot further out then they had walked yesterday. Her coat had guaranteed camouflage, but they had seen the ends of her antennae glowing blue. The kitten must have smelled her, because it started squirming to escape Noctis’ arms. He let it down. 

The larger feline had been laying there with her eyes closed, panting. As the men drew closer they saw that there was a killer bee stinger stuck in one of her front paws… pretty far in, too. Painful was definitely too mild a word to describe it. It was swollen, and every so often it would twitch. It was probably sending paralyzing spasms of pain and that was why the big cat hadn’t tried to find her offspring. 

“There is no way for us to remove that without her attacking.” Gladio sighed. One of them was going to get hurt. Ignis wasn’t as discouraged. “If the beast is able to move freely, then yes. She can’t attack if she’s paralyzed or unconscious.”

“We’re gonna wait here for her to fall asleep?” Gladio was incredulous that the advisor would be willing to waste so much time. It wasn’t like him. Sure enough, Ignis put his fear to rest. “I never said anything about a natural sleep. Noct, may I have a magic flask and the ingredients for a stopcast?” 

Noctis provided the items for the request. He handed Prompto a mega phoenix down. “This will heal her fully once we get the stinger out. If it can undo death then it can undo a bee sting.” The blond nodded. He’d stand at the ready and throw it once they were done removing the foreign object. “Shouldn’t we have another stopcast so she doesn’t immediately pounce once she’s able?”

“Well, that would be a good idea, but…” Noctis only had enough for one. They would have to pray that the animal would be grateful.

During all of their planning the kitten had snuggled up onto its mother. She leaned over as much as she could to sniff her baby. She finally looked at who she had smelled coming. The four humans were warily eyeing her, and she dared them to take a step closer. She was hungry, and she let them know with a growl. 

“She sounds like she’s starving. Who knows when her last meal was.” Surprisingly, Gladio was the one to suggest they attempt feeding her before the healing. Usually Ignis worried about getting everyone fed, but he was too distracted with preparing the magic flask correctly. The advisor quickly agreed though. “Maybe she will be less willing to attack if she is satiated.”

Noctis summoned a hunk of garula meat they’d stuck into the armiger after a battle. (Ignis hadn’t had the chance to slice it up properly yet.) Gladio took it from him and stepped closer. Prompto noticed first. “Watch out, her whiskers are starting to glow brighter. She’s scared.” 

“I’m going as slow as I can.” True to word, the shield was inching closer with the meat outstretched. Hunger overrode distrust and the cat allowed him to draw near. He set the garula hunk down and the coeurl struggled to sit up. Every move irritated the paw. The kitten wasted no time walking over and started chewing on the offering. 

They let the felines eat. Ignis finished up with the flask. “Here’s the plan: I will throw this. Gladio, since you are still close you can yank the stinger out. As soon as it is out, throw the Mega Phoenix, Prompto. Noctis, if it attacks once it is healed then warp-strike it. That will stun it and give us time to get away.”

Everyone up to date, Ignis raised his arm and counted down to potential disaster. “Three, two, one.”

He let the spell fly and they burst into action. Gladio leapt forward and grabbed the paw, knowing he only had a few seconds. He pulled the stinger out and immediately moved away. Once clear, Prompto threw the Mega Phoenix. They watched the magic item heal the paw to its former glory, no trace of blood or injury left behind. The stopcast wore off as soon as the Mega Phoenix finished. Noctis braced, ready to warp.

The adult coeurl stood up and roared at them. Her baby meowed, a pale imitation of the ferocity. As they were yelled at for no reason the men stood there frozen. Running would invite an attack, and Noctis was still poised to strike. A few tense seconds passed where no one did anything. Then the coeurl started purring. She picked up her kitten by the scruff of its neck, her large teeth not pressing hard enough to hurt her precious baby. She turned and walked away.

“So much for a thank you.” Gladio was just glad that nobody was being eaten. Ignis sighed with relief. “That was the thank you.”

“That’s good enough for me.” Prompto took a picture of the retreating cats. Noctis stretched, ready to go back to the car. “Come on, let’s get moving. We’ve got places to be.”

“Oh, what’s this? You’re motivated all of a sudden?” Ignis feigned surprise. As expected, Noctis had one thing on his mind. “Motivated to get to a hotel so we can sleep.”

Prompto laughed. “You’re like a cat. Always tired, picky eater, loves fish…”


End file.
